Nelson Scallop Closures
Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: General Forums
Forum Name: Fisheries Management
Forum Description: Anything to do with fisheries management here please
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=117971
Printed Date: 26 Jan 2026 at 2:45pm
Topic: Nelson Scallop Closures
Posted By: Tagit
Subject: Nelson Scallop Closures
Date Posted: 15 Jun 2016 at 9:48am
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If you are interested, type 'Scallop" into the search area on stuff.co.nz and read the last 12 months or so of articles about the management of the TACC etc. In a nutshell - Declining fishery needs reduced TAC. Industry suggests a TACC higher than what they harvested the previous year, and MPI agree. The recreational group argue that the proposed take is way above MPI guidelines for sustainable harvest as a % of biomass, but minister signs off Comm sector plan. This season they think they will have to close the fishery. Just another example of our world leading fisheries management. As an aside, there is a comment in one the articles where a scientific researcher notes how the cumulative effect of decades of bottom trawling and dredging has flattened the seabed, destroyed all the horse mussels etc and hence destroyed the ability of the seafloor to deal with sediment deposits. Net result is the scallop habitat (and fish habitat I assume) has been destroyed by sediment. How much of the destruction of our inshore fisheries is due to bottom trawling destroying the sea bed and allowing sediment to become established I wonder.
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Replies:
Posted By: Capt Asparagus
Date Posted: 15 Jun 2016 at 10:08am
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The answer to that mate is A LOT The dredging of the mussel beds in the firth of thames last century turned the area into a mud floor wasteland. I think quiet steps are being taken by some mussel farmers and processors to try to reintroduce the almost solid mussel bed that once covered the area, but it will be a long and slow process sadly. ------------- It is only my overwhelming natural humility that mars my perfection. Captain Asparagus, Superhero, Adventurer. |
Posted By: Tagit
Date Posted: 15 Jun 2016 at 2:05pm
| I bet the industry won't be interested in conducting any research on the long term effects of bottom trawling, but given that it might be a significant risk to our long term fisheries and may even be a major contributor to their current depleted state, you might think that MPI should be looking into it at least. Anyone know if they have done any research about this? |
Posted By: mowerman
Date Posted: 16 Jun 2016 at 9:20am
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My take which would not be to far from the mark as well Dave. Continual ploughing of the sea bed has reduced it to a marine desert ..Allows for sediment build up as filter feeders and grasses ,all animal life have been extinguished. The sediment build up is slow and continual as nothing is mopping it up as had been the case in the past ...Bit like looking at a hills of forest ...we know what happens when they remove all the trees ...or ploughed up new subdivision's compared to a paddock of green grass . The same would apply to the marine environment ...remove everything the result is easy to spot . It appears that out of sight is out of mind .. ------------- The People Protest Actions Speak Louder Than Words |
Posted By: Southern_Jez
Date Posted: 12 Jul 2016 at 3:20pm
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CLOSED!: http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/aquaculture/82017915/banned-no-scalloping-for-marlborough-sounds-parts-of-tasman-bay" rel="nofollow - http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/aquaculture/82017915/banned-no-scalloping-for-marlborough-sounds-parts-of-tasman-bay |
Posted By: Barrie
Date Posted: 12 Jul 2016 at 4:05pm
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and its closed to both commercial and recreational. Good on them but its how they legislate going forward will be of more interest. |
Posted By: Tagit
Date Posted: 12 Jul 2016 at 6:24pm
| So the commercial scallop industry take excess scallops from the biomass each year until the fishery is screwed and then it gets closed to them and the recreational harvesters. Then when it reopens (if not completely wrecked) we will repeat the cycle. Over the long term the commercial sector take each year will average out (excess for years up to collapse, then lower TACC after a rebuild), but the recreational harvest is just slashed by the closures and there is no long term averaging. So not only all those scallops get given to the fishing industry for free in the first place (zero return to the public), but now the public get their traditional right to harvest a feed taken away as well so that the industry can get a faster rebuild of the biomass and start filling their pockets again. What a great system we have. |
Posted By: cirrus
Date Posted: 12 Jul 2016 at 6:30pm
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Would have thought , expected, the "Best fishery management in the world" to have seen this coming. But they didnt. Can only wonder about other fisheries with below optimum bio mass. A very sad state of affairs that need not have happened. |
Posted By: DeKay
Date Posted: 12 Jul 2016 at 6:39pm
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Closed 3 days before opening day. I think it's good for the scallop fishery but the timing could have been better. I've got flights to picton Friday morning and back Sunday. Leave booked. Oh well. Fishing it is. |
Posted By: Gatekeeper
Date Posted: 12 Jul 2016 at 7:39pm
You see the media wagon are at it again. Its not totally closed, only closed in the RED ZONE so god help what little is left in the beds in Golden Bay and Tasman Bay because its going to be open season on them now. 90 submissions out of 159 said total closure but they took option 2 and just closed 7H and the sounds. I wonder some times!!! ------------- There is never a better time to go fishing than now, live the day |
Posted By: hookerpuka
Date Posted: 15 Jul 2016 at 3:49pm
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My understanding of the fishery down there was they were shown how to seed the beds by the chinesse a few years back, but unfortunately they overseeded them causing them to stunt growth etc... My main concern is that those boats will now head north and hit the areas up here that produce good quantities :(
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Posted By: Bossco
Date Posted: 16 Jul 2016 at 10:28pm
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Don't see why they need a blanket ban as opposed to just a ban on dredging. Why penalise divers for the damage that the recreational and commercial dredgers are doing?
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Posted By: Southern_Jez
Date Posted: 17 Jul 2016 at 9:47am
My understanding is that it hasnt been closed due to damage caused by dredging, but just overfishing. The 50 scallop rec limit is far to high in my opinion, but I'm coming from a fishery where you are only allowed 10 of the tasty little buggers. For what it's worth, we dive for our shellfish, tried dredging once, lost it, just stuck with diving ever since.
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Bossco wrote:Posted By: Derek F
Date Posted: 17 Jul 2016 at 10:03am
I would agree with you ....except....I can't swim or dive  ------------- And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more...Erica Jong |
Posted By: cirrus
Date Posted: 17 Jul 2016 at 12:08pm
Just overfishing. Mind boggles. They didnt see it coming did they. Why not.??? So instead. Oh well fishery is stuffed,better close it--ho hum.Great but predictable fishery management response. Pity scallops arnt more aggressive -like sharks. Maybe they will learn and the news headlines will feature more scallop attacks. Self preservation of scallops. Proper management would have seen the decline and taken action to stem it long before it got to this. And even if other factors like parasites or disease were at play same should have applied |
Posted By: Catchelot
Date Posted: 18 Jul 2016 at 11:22am
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Local Iwi support year long ban... is a year long enough? http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/81286345/top-of-the-south-iwi-support-ministry-for-primary-industries-proposal-for-yearlong-scallop-ban" rel="nofollow - http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/81286345/top-of-the-south-iwi-support-ministry-for-primary-industries-proposal-for-yearlong-scallop-ban |
Posted By: cirrus
Date Posted: 18 Jul 2016 at 12:56pm
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Seem they didnt notice either. Not much point protecting them if they are not there anymore. |
Posted By: veitnamcam
Date Posted: 21 Aug 2016 at 5:22pm
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Was fishing in 7HH area today, 3 small trawlers working in the area presumably targeting the gurnard at the moment. So they may not be dredging but how the hell are the scollops and oysters sopost to recover when what little are left after commercial dredging are being run over by bottom trawls?
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Posted By: cirrus
Date Posted: 21 Aug 2016 at 6:12pm
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You make a very valid point Cam. They dredge the crap out of them ,close the beds ,then smash them up for a bit of add on effect. Bit like carpet bombing. Totally irresponsible action. Could only happen in N.Z. |
Posted By: hookerpuka
Date Posted: 25 Aug 2016 at 10:26am
| Was out off bream tail on Tuesday, we counted 11 scallop boats in about a 2km square area. Never seen that many up here in one confined area like that before and a lot of the boats I have never seen before either. Is this a spin off from the southern beds being closed? |
Posted By: mowerman
Date Posted: 25 Aug 2016 at 11:31am
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They are running out of scallop beds to ruin ...so they move in another area and decimate everything .It happens as there is not enough public pressure to force a change.Yes we are just run roughshod over the top of because we allow this ... ------------- The People Protest Actions Speak Louder Than Words |
Posted By: cirrus
Date Posted: 25 Aug 2016 at 8:11pm
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Happened to be in Whitianga last week and was told by a reliable source that the Whitianga boats were all fishing up at Uretiti. This may explain the extra boats that Hookerpuka saw in his area. As we were staying in a self contained motel unit was keen to cook up some fresh local scallops. But there were none to be had. Very disappointing. Same for fresh fish. Only saw a couple of vacumn sealed packs of Hoki and Salmon in a supermarket---no thanks. Made inquiries and ,yes,there is no fish shop in Whitianga. Very disappointing given it is a tourist Town. Overseas tourists just love to seek out fresh local produce. Considering we were tourists in Whitianga we were disappointed at the non availability of fresh local seafood. Our stay would have been that much more memorable if it were available. A local restaurant owner also said that fresh local fish was very difficult to find. Ironic given Whitianga is a major fishing port. Something very wrong in that. In his words ,if you wanted it you had to catch your own. So not sure how the many elderly people there ,who cant fish,find quality health giving seafood. |
Posted By: Gatekeeper
Date Posted: 25 Aug 2016 at 8:35pm
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Would not suprize me if you guys are going to get hammered as ALL of this seasons scallops will need to come from up North. Thats and extra 22 ton if the TAC allows it. Not sure what your TAC is and if they catch it all each season. If its like Nelsons we had a TACC of 720 ton for the last 10 years and they only caught 20 ton the last season ------------- There is never a better time to go fishing than now, live the day |
Posted By: hookerpuka
Date Posted: 27 Aug 2016 at 4:00pm
| Yeah I would say there are going to be issues, I know my local is jumping up and down about it and theres nothing they or he can do to stop it happening apparently :( |
Posted By: worksux
Date Posted: 31 Aug 2016 at 5:43pm
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http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/83684122/crayfish-functionally-extinct-in-the-hauraki-gulf The amount of pots in the water around the Mercs are just outstanding, infact down right dangerous in poor light. ------------- http://www.legasea.co.nz" rel="nofollow"> 
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Posted By: cirrus
Date Posted: 31 Aug 2016 at 6:37pm
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Just read that . Gloomy reading. How ever did it get to that. |
Posted By: Tagit
Date Posted: 31 Aug 2016 at 8:15pm
| This is a classic example of our current governments 'management'. They set Auckland up to take massive immigration and target virtually doubling the population in a generation. That supposedly achieves some of the governments economic targets. ut at what real cost??? At the same time, they do nothing to 'manage' one of Aucklands most important natural resources in it's marine environment and fishery. It is absolutely obvious that the Hauraki Gulf will not support the current level of commercial pillage and a massively increased recreational fishing population. So what do they do, stick their heads in the sand and piddle around with meaningless tweaks that are designed more to confuse the voters than create any meaningful change. Anyone who thinks that the HG will support current commercial take levels and the population increase needs to go back to primary school to relearn their basic maths. |
Posted By: mowerman
Date Posted: 31 Aug 2016 at 9:25pm
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That's why we need the trawlers out of the HG...out where the sunrises..They waste most of what is caught so why should they be catching it !!! ------------- The People Protest Actions Speak Louder Than Words |
Posted By: NumnuT_AUS
Date Posted: 01 Sep 2016 at 2:00pm
How are you going to do that MM? Craig |
Posted By: mowerman
Date Posted: 01 Sep 2016 at 5:52pm
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It may happen sooner than you think. ------------- The People Protest Actions Speak Louder Than Words |